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With today’s Fruit Grower Report, I’m Bob Larson. After a decade of planting, cultivating, and nurturing, Wenatchee’s Stemilt Growers is hailing the wildly popular Honeycrisp apple an overwhelming success.

Stemilt’s Brianna Shales says Honeycrisp acreage has been increasing in recent years as a growing number of shoppers keep asking for them …

SHALES … “Honeycrisp has been in one of those demand exceeds supply situations for quite a while and, at least here at Stemilt, we are coming into a year where we have increased production on Honeycrisp now that new trees have come into acreage and a huge increase in organic Honeycrisps. So, it’s really exciting for us as a company to be positioned with a leading variety like Honeycrisp and be able to supply it to our customers for a longer period of time and with really, really high qualities.”

Shales says this year’s increased production will allow them to keep the Honeycrisp available until early next summer …

SHALES … “It’s definitely one of the consumer’s favorite apple now, I think. And so, being able to supply that to shoppers longer and with really high qualities will benefit everyone throughout the chain, whether it’s the grower, or the retailer or, of course, the shopper.”

Shales says the wetter, cooler winter followed by the

hotter, drier summer caused no significant damage.

Listen tomorrow to learn more about this year’s harvest and the increasing growth of organic Honeycrisp apples.